Seahorses Are Sold Out

Constanze Spengler

Katya Gehrmann

Gecko Press, 2021

40pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9781776573868

Mika’s father works from home and he’s very busy! He can never find time for the promised swimming trip. So Dad allows Mika to choose a pet from the store while he finishes the project—something quiet like a mouse. But when the mouse gets lost, Mika goes back to the pet shop to buy a puppy to sniff it out and keep watch over it.  But when the puppy does a puddle in the bathroom because it doesn’t understand how to use the toilet, she goes back to get a seal who will oversee the proper use of the bathroom.  But when the seal wants to swim and the mouse can’t…  Sadly the seahorses have sold out.

And all the while the too-busy father doesn’t notice until finally he finishes the job he is working on.

This story of a single dad trying to balance child care and working from home will resonate with many at the moment, while that of the child wanting a pet for company will be familiar to many children.  And the extravagance of Mika’s solution will make them laugh.  But if the seahorses weren’t sold out what care would they need? Would they make the perfect pet that Dad wants?  Perhaps an opportunity to investigate these amazing little creatures.